Andy Brosig/News-Sun Preliminary spring enrollment numbers are in at Lea County’s two colleges and the news is pretty good. New Mexico Junior College, which resumed classes for the semester on Monday, reported 1,538 full-time students enrolled for spring, said Cathy Mitchell, vice president of student services. University of the Southwest Provost Ryan Tipton reported, with more than a week of …

In contrast to the bad news often inspired by the COVID-19 pandemic, University of the Southwest has some things to celebrate. First, the university has more students enrolled in its undergraduate and graduate programs than ever before, according to Ryan Tipton, provost of the university. “In this crisis, we’ve really battened down the hatches,” Tipton said. “We’ve been preparing for …

University of the Southwest students eligible for assistance under the terms of the CARES Act began to receive checks from the university last week. “Checks being sent out (from the university) will put a minimum of $575 into each eligible undergraduate student’s hands to provide emergency funding to help defray the costs of the impact of the pandemic on their …

University of the Southwest is planning a 21st century graduation, i.e. a graduation that is entirely virtual and therefore in keeping with the university’s goal to be and to become, the University of the Future. The virtual graduation is scheduled to begin at 10 a.m. on May 16. University provost Ryan Tipton described the planned ceremony by saying, “The only …

Following conflicting testimony from partygoers about whether he had a gun or not, a Hobbs magistrate judge found sufficient probable cause Friday to bind over for trial the one person charged thus far in connection to a recent mass shooting in Hobbs. A New Mexico Junior College student-athlete from Chicago testified before Magistrate Judge Craig La Bree Friday at a …

Acting University of the Southwest Provost Ryan Tipton said Tuesday that there is “some really cool stuff going on at the university.” His description of some of the “cool stuff” indicates just how much the university is dedicated to being a living example of its “servant leadership” credo. “We have lots of global presence,” Tipton said. “We have students on …

Laura Hunt’s defense of her doctoral dissertation University of the Southwest was unique in several ways. First, Hunt is the first doctoral candidate at the university and she represented an important step in the evolution of the school’s academic program. The university has offered Masters degrees in business and in educational leadership for several years. School administrators said pans are …

Dirty Jobs’ host headed to Hobbs to speak The man who became known as “the dirtiest man on TV” will be coming to Hobbs this fall to talk about the value of vocational education while offering other insights. Mike Rowe, who for eight seasons hosted “Dirty Jobs” on the Discovery Channel, is coming to Hobbs in September as part of …

Enrollment at a Lea County institutions of higher learning showed a dip in total enrollment numbers at the start of this school year compared to last year. One administrator says part of that reason is the local economy is showing a uptick. At NMJC, Larry Sanderson vice president of development, institutional effectiveness & accreditation, said, “Our enrollment report for fall 2017 is a …